[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 117 (Monday, June 19, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 35260-35265]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-9597]


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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION


Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services; Overview 
Information; Personnel Development to Improve Services and Results for 
Children with Disabilities--National Center to Enhance the Professional 
Development of School Personnel Who Share Responsibility for Improving 
Results for Children With Disabilities (National Professional 
Development Enhancement Center); Notice Inviting Applications for New 
Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2006

Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.325F.

    Dates: Applications Available: June 19, 2006.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 19, 2006.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 18, 2006.
    Eligible Applicants: Institutions of higher education (IHEs).
    Estimated Available Funds: $1,350,000.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $1,350,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. 
The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services may change the maximum amount through a notice published in 
the Federal Register.
    Number of Awards: 1.


    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.


    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

Full Text of Announcement

I. Funding Opportunity Description

    Purpose of Program: The purposes of this program are to (1) help 
address State-identified needs for highly qualified personnel--in 
special education, related services, early intervention, and regular 
education--to work with infants or toddlers with disabilities, or 
children with disabilities; and (2) ensure that those personnel have 
the skills and knowledge--derived from practices that have been 
determined through research and experience to be successful--that are 
needed to serve those children.
    Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(v), this priority 
is from allowable activities specified in the statute (see sections 
662(d) and 681(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act 
(IDEA)).
    Absolute Priority: For FY 2006 this priority is an absolute 
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that 
meet this priority.

[[Page 35261]]

    This priority is: National Center to Enhance the Professional 
Development of School Personnel Who Share Responsibility for Improving 
Results for Children with Disabilities.

Background

    Enacted in 1975, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act 
mandated the right to a free, appropriate education in the least 
restrictive environment for students with disabilities, and subsequent 
policy and legislative action have reinforced this mandate. In 1986, 
the Department launched the Regular Education Initiative, which was 
called for general and special education teachers to collaborate and 
share responsibility for educating students with disabilities in 
classrooms alongside their peers without disabilities. The 1997 
reauthorization of IDEA required access to the general education 
curriculum for students with disabilities. The No Child Left Behind Act 
of 2001 (NCLB) and IDEA, as amended by the Individuals with 
Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, are closely aligned to 
promote the delivery of instructional content by highly qualified 
teachers and increased accountability for students' academic 
achievement by requiring schools to include students with disabilities 
in their measures of adequate yearly progress (AYP).
    Despite this history of policies promoting the inclusion of 
students with disabilities in the general education environment, 
according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES, 2000), 
67 percent of public school teachers reported that they did not feel 
very well prepared to address the needs of students with disabilities 
in their classrooms. For example, during the 2004-2005 academic year, 
according to the Study of State and Local Implementation of the 
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (SLIIDEA), school 
principals reported that general education teachers were generally much 
less prepared than special educators to use accommodations in 
instruction and assessment to improve the academic performance of 
students with individualized education programs (IEPs). The promise of 
NCLB and IDEA to ensure that students with disabilities have IEPs to 
promote their access to and participation and progress in the general 
education curriculum in the least restrictive environment can only be 
realized if schools are staffed with highly qualified personnel. These 
personnel should be able to provide content-rich, standards-based 
curriculum and make any needed accommodations, modifications, and 
adaptations for curriculum, instruction, and assessment.
    In 2001, the Department's Office of Special Education Programs 
(OSEP) funded a five year Faculty Enhancement Center to ensure that 
future administrators, general education teachers, school counselors, 
and school nurses would be prepared to meet the demands of their 
respective roles and responsibilities in providing effective services 
to children with disabilities. This Faculty Enhancement Center 
developed and disseminated training modules and supporting materials 
for use by faculty and students in IHEs in discipline specific pre-
service training programs, and these modules and materials have been 
incorporated into the curricular and instructional offerings of college 
and university pre-service programs across the country. There has been 
and continues to be, however, an enormous demand for high caliber and 
content rich pre-service training and ongoing professional development 
modules and materials to produce highly qualified teachers and school 
personnel. Therefore, OSEP is establishing a priority for a National 
Center to Enhance the Professional Development of School Personnel Who 
Share Responsibility for Improving Results for Children with 
Disabilities to address the critical need for highly qualified teachers 
and school personnel.
    Priority: This priority supports a National Center to Enhance the 
Professional Development of School Personnel Who Share Responsibility 
for Improving Results for Children with Disabilities (Center). The 
purposes of this Center are to ensure that: (a) Pre-service training 
and ongoing professional development programs for general and special 
education personnel have ready access to content-rich and high-caliber 
instructional modules, materials and resources; (b) these programs help 
prepare highly qualified teachers and school personnel so that local 
education agencies and schools have the capacity to implement school 
improvement programs to close achievement gaps and reach student 
performance goals of NCLB, especially for students with disabilities; 
and (c) as a result of the training and professional development made 
available through these programs, students with disabilities have IEPs 
that promote access to and greater participation and progress in the 
general education curriculum in the least restrictive environment with 
supplementary services and supports.
    To meet this priority, the Center must--
    (a) Identify needs and existing resources: Identify challenges, 
needs, and existing resources concerning the preparation and retention 
of highly qualified teachers and school personnel through a 
comprehensive review of: (1) Current policy, scientifically based 
research, and evidence-based practice literature on teaching and 
learning to provide a foundation for subject content and teaching 
methods modules; (2) current efforts funded by the Department that are 
related to professional development, personnel and teacher preparation 
and technical assistance (e.g., efforts by the National Comprehensive 
Center for Teacher Quality, the Center for Improving Teacher Quality, 
and the National Center for Special Education Personnel and Related 
Service Providers); and (3) the results of the focus group interviews 
conducted by the Center in accordance with paragraph (b) of this 
priority;
    (b) Conduct focus group interviews. Conduct focus group interviews 
with key stakeholders (e.g., State and local educational agency 
personnel, IHE faculty involved with pre-service preparation, students, 
teachers, parents of students with disabilities, and members of 
professional organizations). These interviews must be designed to 
generate information about: (i) The knowledge and skills that personnel 
need to ensure that students with disabilities have access to and 
participate and progress in the general education curriculum in the 
least restrictive environment, and (ii) the preparation of highly 
qualified teachers and school personnel who have the knowledge and 
skills required to implement school improvement programs that close 
achievement gaps and enable schools to reach State adequate yearly 
progress requirements under NCLB, especially for students with 
disabilities. Interviews must include, but are not limited to, 
questions regarding the use and effect of: (1) Evidence-based 
instructional practices in reading, math and science; (2) standards-
based curriculum; (3) student progress-monitoring; (4) related services 
and supports; (5) early intervening services that improve student 
outcomes and reduce the disproportionality and overrepresentation of 
culturally and linguistically diverse students in special education; 
(6) testing accommodations and alternate assessments; (7) postsecondary 
and transition services; and (8) positive behavioral interventions and 
supports;
    (c) Develop pre-service training and professional development 
modules: Develop content-rich pre-service

[[Page 35262]]

training, professional development modules and related materials to 
address the critical challenges and needs identified in paragraph (a) 
of this priority. These modules and materials must be based on adult-
learning principles and be designed for ease of integration into 
existing curricula and practicums for pre-service personnel preparation 
at IHEs and into ongoing professional development programs for 
practicing personnel. These modules and materials must provide 
instructional content on--use of evidence-based instructional 
practices, standards-based curriculum, student progress-monitoring, and 
data to inform decision-making; collaborative problem solving with 
colleagues; provision of related services and supports, testing 
accommodations and alternative assessments; and development of IEPs to 
ensure students with disabilities have access to and participate and 
progress in the general education curriculum in the least restrictive 
environment.
    Modules and materials must be developed in collaboration with 
content experts, through sub-contractual or consultative arrangements 
with the Center, to ensure that the module content is evidence-based, 
current, and reflects best and promising practices. Each proposed 
content expert and module topic must be chosen in collaboration with, 
and approved by, OSEP prior to the initiation of any development 
activity;
    (d) Disseminate pre-service training and professional development 
modules and provide targeted technical assistance: Develop and 
implement mechanisms that will result in effective and efficient large-
scale dissemination and use of the pre-service training and 
professional development modules developed in accordance with paragraph 
(c) of this priority. The Center must make all modules and supporting 
materials available on a dedicated Web site that is easily searchable 
by topic and is available for use to the general public at no cost. The 
Center must develop a dissemination partnership with at least one 
textbook publisher that includes in its products and services 
references or other links to the modules, materials and resources 
developed by the Center (without cost to the Center or additional costs 
to the consumer). The mechanisms developed by the Center must provide 
for targeted dissemination of the modules and materials to, and for use 
of these modules and materials by: (1) Pre-service training programs in 
IHEs, including those that do not have a special education department; 
(2) pre-service training programs whose graduates historically have 
assumed positions in urban or rural schools that have a critical need 
for highly qualified teachers and school personnel; (3) professional 
development service providers working in schools with high rates of 
personnel attrition and where effective professional development 
opportunities may lead to improved staff retention; (4) schools where 
student sub-groups, especially students with disabilities, have not met 
State AYP requirements; and (5) States that are creating a high, 
objective, uniform State standard of evaluation (HOUSSE) to ensure that 
experienced and new teachers are highly qualified. The Center also must 
develop efficient, effective strategies to provide technical assistance 
and supports to assist IHE faculty and professional development service 
providers in the use of the modules and other materials developed by 
the Center;
    (e) Conduct a comprehensive project evaluation: Design and conduct 
a comprehensive evaluation of the work, accomplishments, outcomes, 
impact, and effectiveness of the Center. This evaluation must be 
designed to provide formative information that will guide ongoing 
refinements to the Center's structure, activities, workflow, and 
products to improve the ultimate impact and effectiveness of the 
Center. This comprehensive evaluation also must measure the impact of 
the Center in ensuring that: (1) Pre-service training and ongoing 
professional development programs for general and special education 
personnel have ready access to content-rich and high-caliber modules, 
materials and resources; (2) recipients of the pre-service training and 
ongoing professional development are equipped to meet the highly 
qualified requirements in their State; and (3) as a result of this 
training and professional development, students with disabilities have 
IEPs that promote access to and greater participation and progress in 
the general education curriculum in the least restrictive environment 
with supplementary services and supports; and
    (f) Establish an advisory board: Establish, in concert with its 
OSEP Project Officer, an advisory board to guide the design and 
implementation of the Center's required activities. The advisory board 
must be composed of State and local educational agency personnel, IHE 
faculty involved with pre-service preparation, students, teachers, 
parents of students with disabilities, members of professional 
organizations, OSEP State Improvement Grant or State Professional 
Development Grant project directors, Department-funded technical 
assistance providers, and Department-funded higher education project 
directors, as appropriate.

Fourth and Fifth Years of the Project

    In deciding whether to continue funding the Center for the fourth 
and fifth years, the Secretary will consider the requirements of 34 CFR 
75.253(a), and in addition--
    (a) The recommendation of a review team consisting of experts 
selected by the Secretary, which review will be conducted during the 
last half of the project's second year in Washington, DC. Projects must 
budget for travel expenses associated with this one-day intensive 
review;
    (b) The timeliness and effectiveness with which all requirements of 
the negotiated cooperative agreement have been or are being met by the 
Center; and
    (c) The degree to which the project's design and methodology 
demonstrate the potential for advancing significant new knowledge.
    Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure 
Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553) the Department generally offers interested 
parties the opportunity to comment on a proposed priority. However, 
section 681(d) of IDEA makes the public comment requirements of the APA 
inapplicable to the priority in this notice.

    Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1462 and 1481(d).

    Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General 
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80, 
81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.

II. Award Information

    Type of Award: Cooperative agreement.
    Estimated Available Funds: $1,350,000.
    Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a 
budget exceeding $1,350,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. 
The Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative 
Services may change the maximum amount through a notice published in 
the Federal Register.
    Number of Awards: 1.


    Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this 
notice.


    Project Period: Up to 60 months.

III. Eligibility Information

    1. Eligible Applicants: IHEs.
    2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost 
sharing or matching.
    3. Other: General Requirements--(a) The projects funded under this

[[Page 35263]]

competition must make positive efforts to employ and advance in 
employment qualified individuals with disabilities (see section 606 of 
IDEA).
    (b) Applicants and grant recipients funded under this competition 
must involve individuals with disabilities or parents of individuals 
with disabilities ages birth through 26 in planning, implementing, and 
evaluating the projects (see section 682(a)(1)(A) of IDEA).

IV. Application and Submission Information

    1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications 
Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll 
free): 1-877-433-7827. FAX: (301) 470-1244. If you use a 
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free): 
1-877-576-7734.
    You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: 
[email protected].
    If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify 
this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.325F.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application 
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts 
Services Team listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section 
VII of this notice.
    2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements 
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you 
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
    Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application) 
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that 
reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit Part III to 
the equivalent of no more than 70 pages, using the following standards:
     A ``page'' is 8.5'' x 11'', on one side only, with 1'' 
margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
     Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch) 
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings, 
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in 
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
     Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller 
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
    The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II, 
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part 
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the 
resumes, the bibliography, the references, or the letters of support. 
However, you must include all of the application narrative in Part III.
    We will reject your application if--
     You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
     You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the 
page limit.
    3. Submission Dates and Times: Applications Available: June 19, 
2006.
    Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: July 19, 2006.
    Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted 
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), or in 
paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates 
and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by 
mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV. 6. Other Submission 
Requirements in this notice.
    We do not consider an application that does not comply with the 
deadline requirements.
    Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: September 18, 2006.
    4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive 
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about 
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order 
12372 is in the application package for this competition.
    5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding 
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
    6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under 
this competition may be submitted electronically or in paper format by 
mail or hand delivery.
    a. Electronic Submission of Applications. We have been accepting 
applications electronically through the Department's e-Application 
system since FY 2000. In order to expand on those efforts and comply 
with the President's Management Agenda, we are continuing to 
participate as a partner in the new government wide Grants.gov Apply 
site in FY 2006. The National Professional Development Enhancement 
Center competition--CFDA number 84.325F is one of the competitions 
included in this project. We request your participation in Grants.gov.
    If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must 
use the Grants.gov Apply site at http://www.Grants.gov. Through this 
site, you will be able to download a copy of the application package, 
complete it offline, and then upload and submit your application. You 
may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant application to us.
    You may access the electronic grant application for the National 
Professional Development Enhancement Center competition--CFDA number 
84.325F at: http://www.grants.gov. You must search for the downloadable 
application package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not include 
the CFDA number's alpha suffix in your search.
    Please note the following:
     Your participation in Grants.gov is voluntary.
     When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find 
information about submitting an application electronically through the 
site, as well as the hours of operation.
     Applications received by Grants.gov are time and date 
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted, and 
must be date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as 
otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application 
if it is date/time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30 
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. When we 
retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are 
rejecting your application because it was date/time stamped by the 
Grants.gov system after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date.
     The amount of time it can take to upload an application 
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the 
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we 
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline 
date to begin the application process through Grants.gov.
     You should review and follow the Education Submission 
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are 
included in the application package for this competition to ensure that 
you submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov 
system. You can also find the Education Submission Procedures 
pertaining to Grants.gov at http://e-Grants.ed.gov/help/GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf.
     To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must 
complete all of the steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see 
http://www.Grants.gov/GetStarted). These steps include (1) registering 
your organization, (2) registering yourself as an Authorized

[[Page 35264]]

Organization Representative (AOR), and (3) getting authorized as an AOR 
by your organization. Details on these steps are outlined in the 
Grants.gov 3-Step Registration Guide (see http://www.grants.gov/assets/GrantsgovCoBrandBrochure8X11.pdf). You also must provide on your 
application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this registration. Please 
note that the registration process may take five or more business days 
to complete, and you must have completed all registration steps to 
allow you to successfully submit an application via Grants.gov.
     You will not receive additional point value because you 
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you 
if you submit your application in paper format.
     You may submit all documents electronically, including all 
information typically included on the Application for Federal Education 
Assistance (ED 424), Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs (ED 
524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. If you choose to 
submit your application electronically, you must attach any narrative 
sections of your application as files in a .DOC (document), .RTF (rich 
text) or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If you upload a file type 
other than the three file types specified above or submit a password 
protected file, we will not review that material.
     Your electronic application must comply with any page 
limit requirements described in this notice.
     After you electronically submit your application, you will 
receive an automatic acknowledgment from Grants.gov that contains a 
Grants.gov tracking number. The Department will retrieve your 
application from Grants.gov and send you a second confirmation by e-
mail that will include a PR/Award number (an ED-specified identifying 
number unique to your application).
     We may request that you provide us original signatures on 
forms at a later date.

Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of System Unavailability

    If you are prevented from electronically submitting your 
application on the application deadline date because of technical 
problems with the Grants.gov system, we will grant you an extension 
until 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, the following business day to 
enable you to transmit your application electronically, or by hand 
delivery. You also may mail your application by following the mailing 
instructions as described elsewhere in this notice. If you submit an 
application after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the deadline date, 
please contact the person listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR 
FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, and provide an explanation of the 
technical problem you experienced with Grants.gov, along with the 
Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number (if available). We will accept your 
application if we can confirm that a technical problem occurred with 
the Grants.gov system and that that problem affected your ability to 
submit your application by 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the 
application deadline date. The Department will contact you after a 
determination is made on whether your application will be accepted.


    Note: Extensions referred to in this section apply only to the 
unavailability of or technical problems with the Grants.gov system. 
We will not grant you an extension if you failed to fully register 
to submit your application to Grants.gov before the deadline date 
and time or if the technical problem you experienced is unrelated to 
the Grants.gov system.

    b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail. If you submit your 
application in paper format by mail (through the U.S. Postal Service or 
a commercial carrier), you must mail the original and two copies of 
your application, on or before the application deadline date, to the 
Department at the applicable following address:
    By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of 
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.325F), 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260,
     or
    By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education, 
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: (CFDA Number 
84.325F), 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
    Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing 
consisting of one of the following:
    (1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark,
    (2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the 
U.S. Postal Service,
    (3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial 
carrier, or
    (4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the 
U.S. Department of Education.
    If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do 
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
    (1) A private metered postmark, or
    (2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
    If your application is postmarked after the application deadline 
date, we will not consider your application.


    Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated 
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your 
local post office.

    c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery. If you submit 
your application in paper format by hand delivery, you (or a courier 
service) must deliver the original and two copies of your application 
by hand, on or before the application deadline date, to the Department 
at the following address: U.S. Department of Education, Application 
Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.325F), 550 12th Street, SW., 
Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-4260.
    The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily 
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays, 
Sundays and Federal holidays.
    Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail 
or hand deliver your application to the Department:
    (1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the 
Department--in Item 4 of ED 424 the CFDA number--and suffix letter, if 
any--of the competition under which you are submitting your 
application.
    (2) The Application Control Center will mail a grant application 
receipt acknowledgment to you. If you do not receive the grant 
application receipt acknowledgment within 15 business days from the 
application deadline date, you should call the U.S. Department of 
Education Application Control Center at (202) 245-6288.

V. Application Review Information

    1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition 
are from 34 CFR 75.210 and are listed in the application package.
    2. Treating A Priority As Two Separate Competitions: In the past, 
there have been problems in finding peer reviewers without conflicts of 
interest for competitions in which many entities throughout the country 
submit applications. The Standing Panel requirements under IDEA also 
have placed additional constraints on the availability of reviewers. 
Therefore, the Department has determined that, for some discretionary 
competitions, applications may be separated into two or more groups and 
ranked and selected for funding within the specific group. This 
procedure will ensure the

[[Page 35265]]

availability of a much larger group of reviewers without conflicts of 
interest. It also will increase the quality, independence and fairness 
of the review process and permit panel members to review applications 
under discretionary competitions for which they have also submitted 
applications. However, if the Department decides to select for funding 
an equal number of applications in each group, this may result in 
different cut-off points for fundable applications in each group.

VI. Award Administration Information

    1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your 
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award 
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
    If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding, 
we notify you.
    2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify 
administrative and national policy requirements in the application 
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable 
Regulations section of this notice.
    We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of 
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and 
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also 
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding 
commitments under the grant.
    3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a 
final performance report, including financial information, as directed 
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an 
annual performance report that provides the most current performance 
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in 
34 CFR 75.118.
    4. Performance Measures: Under the Government Performance and 
Results Act of 1993 (GPRA), the Department has developed measures that 
will yield information on various aspects of the technical assistance 
and dissemination activities currently being supported under IDEA Part 
D. These measures will be used for the National Center to Enhance the 
Professional Development of School Personnel who Share Responsibility 
for Improving Results for Children with Disabilities competition, and 
they focus on: The extent to which projects provide high quality 
products and services, the relevance of project products and services 
to educational and early intervention policy and practice, and the use 
of products and services to improve educational and early intervention 
policy and practice.
    We will notify grantees if they will be required to provide any 
information related to these measures.
    Grantees will also be required to report information on their 
projects' performance in annual reports to the Department (34 CFR 
75.590).

VII. Agency Contact

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Anne Smith, U.S. Department of 
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4086, Potomac Center Plaza, 
Washington, DC 20202-2600. Telephone: (202) 245-7529.
    If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may 
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
    Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an 
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, or computer 
diskette) on request by contacting the following office: The Grants and 
Contracts Services Team, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland 
Avenue, SW., Potomac Center Plaza, Washington, DC 20202-2550. 
Telephone: (202) 245-7363.

VIII. Other Information

    Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as 
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal 
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the 
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
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    Note: The official version of this document is the document 
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    Dated: June 14, 2006.
John H. Hager,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. E6-9597 Filed 6-16-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P